Free Against All Odds (Shifters) by Sam Crescent

him. He was charming, sweet, and everything I thought I should have in a man.” It no longer hurt to talk about him. “I thought he was the one. I was so wrong. After he’d taken what he wanted—you know what I mean by it—he threw me aside.”
    “I’m so sorry,” he said.
    “Don’t be. You’re not the one responsible for it. It wasn’t even worth it. He was awful and painful. I hated every second of it.” She shrugged. “I’ve never let anyone close.”
    ****
    If he ever met this Mark, he was going to hurt him. Her scent was communicating a lot more than her words. Mark had really hurt her, and she was trying to keep it to herself. The smell coming from her emphasised the betrayal she felt.
    “You shouldn’t think about all men like your ex. We’re not all awful people.” He winced at his own words. “That probably sounds awful coming from me. I promise you I’m not usually the type of guy who hurts a woman.”
    “I know.” She kept hold of his arm as they walked around the grounds. This was his favourite time of day. After they finished breakfast, they always went for a walk together in the morning. Lunch time he’d do some odd jobs around the home or outside, and she’d come and sit with him. He liked her company. Heather was the first woman he’d ever gotten to know. With Dana it had been all about the sex or the potential sex he could get. Heather was different. He wasn’t waiting to get her in the sack.
    He enjoyed getting to know her. She was the first person he’d ever been really open with.
    “Dana always talked about you. When I was away, we’d write to each other through email , and she’d tell me about the tiger she’d met. You were a celebrity in her world.”
    Ben started laughing. “I’d never be a celebrity. I like my privacy a little too much.”
    “Do you have control of your tiger?” she asked.
    He froze.
    “I know I shouldn’t be asking, but I thought it would be open for discussion seeing as I’ve talked about part of my past I’m not comfortable with.”
    Turning to her, Ben stared into her clear green eyes. “Push me away.”
    “What?”
    “My tiger responded to your rejection. Push me away.”
    She tensed but then shoved him hard. Ben stared at her as she continued to push and hit him. His tiger was gone. There was no chance of his animal letting loose.
    “I’ve got a handle on it,” he said.
    “How?” she asked, amazed.
    Heather raised her hand to hit him. He caught her hand bringing her close to his chest. She let him, but he’d not reached out to her face. Ben knew his boundaries with regards to touching her.
    “What happened to you was the reason I can keep him at bay. He’ll never come out and attack you. I’m ashamed of what I did. You can push me away, scream, yell , and treat me like shit, Heather. You’re safer with me than you are in a house full of leopards.”
    Dropping a kiss to her knuckles he let her go.
    “I still can’t believe it’s happened so fast.”
    The desire to reach out and touch her was strong. He kept it at bay.
    “You’re my mate. Attacking you was like a shock to the system, and it will never happen again. When I’ve been around you my tiger comes to the surface but only ever to hold you. I don’t want to hurt you.” Ben leaned down. He saw her tense, and he dropped a gentle kiss to her lips. “I don’t expect you to trust me right away. I’m promising you that I’ll do everything I can to make you trust me.”
    “I believe you.”
    They started walking again until their walk stopped and they were back at the house. Lunch was a tense affair. The Ashtons didn’t know how to tell Heather they wanted to get back to their life. He didn’t think they were being cruel.
    Glancing at Heather, he tried to gain her attention.
    She reached between them, grabbing his hand and tightening her hold on him. “Do you guys want to hear the good news?” she asked, cutting through the tense silence. Even Felix looked ready